Protrusion Anchor Assembly

ABSTRACT

A protrusion anchor assembly is provided that utilizes a plurality of extendable pins to secure the anchor body within a bore in any hard material, such as concrete. The anchor body is rotated within the bore while the pins are simultaneously and gradually extended, carving out a groove or grooves within which the pins can sit. After installation, the device is secured within the bore by tightening a jamb nut against the surface of the concrete wall and in some embodiments placing a security plug within the anchor body to ensure that the pins are held in place. The pins prevent the anchor from being withdrawn because they act as protuberances that catch against the edges of the groove and cannot be drawn past that point.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.61/715,893 filed on Oct. 19, 2012, entitled “Protrusion ConcreteAnchor.” The above identified patent application is herein incorporatedby reference in its entirety to provide continuity of disclosure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to an anchoring device for fastening in apre-drilled hole or recess in concrete or another substantially brittlematerial. Specifically, the present invention relates to expandablefemale material fasteners, which are designed to be inserted into aconcrete bore and then expanded via the insertion of a complimentarythreaded bolt or rod, wherein the device acts as an anchor in otherwisebrittle concrete material.

The technology behind concrete anchors has changed little over time, butthere is still room for improvement in this area. The basic idea behindmost concrete fasteners is that they are placed within a pre-drilledbore in the concrete and are then expanded so that the fastener engageswith the walls of the concrete and creates friction. This generatedfriction is what secures the fastener within the concrete and preventsit from moving. The differences among existing concrete fasteners relatemostly to the ways in which the fasteners are expanded once placedwithin the bore. The expansion is accomplished in many different waysand thus there are all types of concrete fasteners, such as wedgeanchors, sleeve anchors, concrete screws, drop-in anchors, machine screwanchors, strikes anchors, hammer drive anchors, split drive anchors, andlag shields.

Many different types of concrete fasteners exist, but most utilize thesame basic strategy of having a portion that is expanded by a rod or awedge to engage against the walls of the bore. Other types of concretefasteners utilize epoxy or some other type of bonding agent to secure afastener within a concrete wall. However, both of the previousmechanical wedge and epoxy designs can lead to anchor slippage overtime. For the mechanical wedge designs, the frictional force generatedby the interaction between the anchor and the bore's walls is notsufficient to hold the anchor indefinitely. For the bonding agentdesigns, the chemicals can wear down over time, which renders the anchoruseless.

The present invention provides a new and novel means for securing afastener within a concrete bore. The present protrusion anchor assemblyrelies on the same basic idea of the mechanical wedge designs inincreasing the volume of the fastener once it is placed within thepre-drilled bore. However, the present invention applies the principlein a different way. Rather than having separate portions that are pushedapart by a wedge or angled baffles that are pushed into the surroundingconcrete, the present invention utilizes a plug to deploy a plurality ofpins from the body of the anchor after it has been placed within theconcrete bore. The pins are gradually deployed while the anchor body issimultaneously rotated, carving a groove or grooves out of thesurrounding concrete bore. The fully extended pins rest within thegrooves and cannot be pulled or pushed therefrom since thefully-extended pins create a larger cross-sectional area for the anchorthan the cross-sectional area of the rest of the bore. Although thepresent protrusion anchor assembly is expansible, only a small portionof the device is expansible and no other such device cuts grooves intothe surrounding bore to help secure the device.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Devices have been disclosed in the prior art that relate to concretefasteners. These include devices that have been patented and publishedin patent application publications. These devices generally relate tofemale concrete anchors that are used with an inserted thread or bolt.The following is a list of devices deemed most relevant to the presentdisclosure, which are herein described for the purposes of highlightingand differentiating the unique aspects of the present invention, andfurther highlighting the drawbacks existing in the prior art.

One such device in the prior art is U.S. Pat. No. 3,943,817 to Mess,which discloses a split bolt used in combination with an insert. Messhas two segments with external threaded surfaces that are designed toradially space apart and engage with the complementary threaded insertmember when a wedge portion is inserted between the segments. The wedgeportion has multiple camming surfaces along its length that engage withcorresponding surfaces on the internal face of the bolt segments, whichcreates a stronger wedge. Although both Mess and the present inventionuse insertable wedges to create an engagement between the concretefastener and the concrete, Mess requires the bolt to be used tocombination with an artificial threaded recess or bore, whereas thepresent concrete fastener directly engages with the concrete.

Another such device is U.S. Pat. No. 4,475,329 to Fischer, whichdiscloses an expansible concrete anchor device with a bonding agent. Theconcrete anchor consists of a slotted portion with a central bore thatis expanded to fit the hole into which it is inserted via the insertionof an expander pin. The central bore is then filled with the bondingagent, creating adhesion between the expander pin and the expansibleanchor, in order to support the engagement between the walls of theexpansible portion and the concrete. The present invention does notutilize any bonding agents and instead relies purely on mechanical forceto generate the frictional force between the walls of the anchor and theconcrete. Furthermore, the present device utilizes a security plug inorder to ensure that the protrusion actuator is fully engaged after theanchor has been installed.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,917,552 to Crawford discloses a pin drive anchor device,whereby the anchor is inserted into a wall of a cavity and then a pin isdriven through the central bore of the anchor to expand the sleeveportions so that they engage with the wall cavity. The present inventionutilizes pins that extend into the surrounding concrete and carve out aportion in order to secure the anchor within the bore, rather than anexpansible sleeve portion as in Crawford.

Another such device is U.S. Pat. No. 5,116,176 to Yousuke, whichdiscloses an expansion anchor that is expanded by forcing a wedge plugthrough the central bore of the anchor. As the anchor expands, theperipheral angular edges of the anchor are forced into the surroundingmaterial, preventing the anchor from being removable from thepre-drilled bore in the material. The present protrusion concrete anchorutilizes a plurality of pins that extend into the surrounding materialin order to secure the anchor, rather than a peripheral angular edge.Furthermore, the present invention utilizes a security plug that may beinstalled into the anchor after the anchor has been secured within theconcrete wall in order to keep the pins engaged with the surroundingconcrete, regardless of the outside forces acting on the anchor.

Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,250 to Kesselman discloses a tamperproofanchor bolt device. Kesselman consists of a standard expandableanchoring means attached to a tamperproof nut assembly. The tamperproofnut assembly is designed such that when a pre-determined amount oftorque is applied, the cap portion breaks off, leaving the anchor in itsexpanded position. The cap being broken off prevents the anchor frombeing removed and therefore prevents undesired tampering. The presentinvention is not specifically meant to address potential tampering, butis instead designed so that it is secured firmly enough that it cannotbe easily removed by forces acting on the anchor, not other individuals.

The present invention provides an expandable concrete fastener devicehaving three main portions. The anchor portion consists of an elongated,largely cylindrical body that has a plurality of pins that are driveninto the surrounding rigid material by the protrusion actuator in orderto secure the anchor therein. The anchor installation tool removablyengages with the anchor portion and provides a rod for driving theprotrusion actuator into the terminal end of the anchor portion andthereby extending the pins into the surrounding material. The securityplug portion has a threaded end that engages with the complimentarythreading in the anchor portion and an elongated rod portion that pushesagainst the protrusion actuator, thereby ensuring that the protrusionactuator remains locked in place. The anchor is placed into apre-drilled bore within the concrete or other rigid material and thenthe installation tool rotates the entire anchor portion while extendingthe pins, thereby cutting a shelf in the surrounding concrete thatsecures the anchor within the bore.

It is submitted that the present invention substantially diverges indesign elements from the prior art and consequently it is clear thatthere is a need in the art for an improvement to existing concretefastener devices. In this regard the instant invention substantiallyfulfills these needs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types ofexpandable rigid material fasteners now present in the prior art, thepresent invention provides a new expandable fastener wherein the samecan be utilized for providing convenience for the user when seeking tosecure objects to concrete or other such rigid materials.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new andimproved expandable fastener device that has all of the advantages ofthe prior art and none of the disadvantages.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an expandablefastener that cannot be pulled out from the material into which it isinstalled.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an expandablefastener that does not use epoxy or other binding agents, as suchcompounds are prone to deterioration over time.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide an expandablefastener that can create a sufficient clamping force to hold thefastener in place merely by depressing the protrusion actuator andthereby deploying the pins.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention willbecome apparent from the following detailed description taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

Although the characteristic features of this invention will beparticularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and mannerin which it may be made and used may be better understood after a reviewof the following description, taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.

FIG. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of the anchor portion of the presentprotrusion anchor assembly.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the anchor installation portion ofthe present protrusion anchor assembly.

FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the installation portion and theanchor portions of the present protrusion anchor assembly engagedtogether, as they are during installation of the anchor portion into abore within a rigid material.

FIG. 4 shows a perspective view of the security plug portion of thepresent protrusion anchor assembly.

FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of the security plug portion and theanchor portions of the present protrusion anchor assembly engagedtogether, as they are after installation of the anchor portion into abore within a rigid material.

FIG. 6 shows a cut-away view of the terminal end of the anchor portionof the present protrusion anchor assembly, demonstrating how the pinportions carve out a section of the concrete to act as a shelf againstwhich the anchor may be supported.

FIG. 7 shows the process of installing the anchor portion with theinstallation portion using an impact wrench fitted with a deep socket.

FIG. 8 shows a cross-sectional view of an alternate embodiment of theanchor portion of the present protrusion anchor assembly.

FIG. 9 shows a cross-sectional view of an alternate embodiment of theinstallation portion of the present protrusion anchor assembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like referencenumerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similarelements of the protrusion anchor assembly. For the purposes ofpresenting a brief and clear description of the present invention, thepreferred embodiment will be discussed as used for permanentlyinstalling the protrusion anchor assembly within a concrete wall. Thefigures are intended for representative purposes only and should not beconsidered to be limiting in any respect.

The present protrusion anchor assembly consists of three separatecomponents, the anchor body, the anchor installation tool, and, in someembodiments, the security plug. In some embodiments, all threecomponents are necessary to securely install the present fastener in ahard, rigid material such as concrete, whereas in other embodiments thepresent protrusion anchor assembly is comprised of merely the anchorbody and the anchor installation tool. The present protrusion anchorassembly is installed within a pre-drilled bore in the concrete. Theanchor body is placed within the bore and then the installation portionis removably secured to the end of the anchor body extending from thehole. The driver rod extending through the installation tool is thendepressed, causing pins to extend from the terminal end of the anchorbody while the anchor installation tool is rotated by a device such asan impact wrench, causing the pins to carve support grooves in thesurrounding bore. The installation tool is then removed and, in someembodiments, the security plug is threadably inserted within the anchorbody to hold it fast in place within the concrete.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is shown a cross-sectional view of anembodiment of the anchor body 11 of the present invention. The anchorbody 11 has an elongated, generally cylindrical body that has an upperthreaded portion 12 and a lower portion 13. The anchor body 11 can becomposed of any material sufficiently resilient to withstand the forcesgenerated by objects fastened to the anchor body, but is preferablycomposed of Grade 8 steel. The anchor body 11 has an internal bore 21extending therethrough, which is adapted to house the protrusionactuator 17. The protrusion actuator 17 has a smaller diameter than thatof the internal bore 21 so that it can slide easily through the device.The internal bore 21 extends between an open hole at the upper threadedportion and an end cap hole 14 at the terminal end of the lower portion13. The upper threaded portion 12 has both external and internalthreading.

The protrusion actuator 17 has a driver end 18 and a tapered end 19. Theprotrusion actuator 17 is arranged such that the tapered end 19 pointstowards the terminal end of the lower portion 13 and, when fullydepressed, the tip of the tapered end may extend partially through theend cap hole 14. The lower portion 13 further has a plurality of anchorholes 15 and a complimentary number of pins 16. The pins 16 can bearranged in either a single horizontally-aligned row or a plurality ofhorizontally-aligned rows. In the preferred embodiment, the pins 16 arearranged such that they are 90 degrees apart when measured radially. Thepins 16 are composed of a material hard enough to withstand the forcesexerted on the surrounding concrete, such as high carbon hardened steel.The pins 16 preferably have a diameter equal to the diameter of theanchor holes 15 so that they are able to slide tightly through theanchor holes 15 and preferably are made of cobalt steel. The inner endof the pins 16 is rounded and the outer end, which carves into thesurrounding concrete during installation of the anchor body 11, ispreferably flat.

The pins 16 are arranged such that outer ends are either below the planeof the anchor holes 15 or flush with the exterior outer wall of thelower portion 13, as long as they do not extend therefrom. Tape oranother adhesive may optionally be disposed around the lower portion 13across the anchor holes 15 in order to keep the outer ends of the pins16 secured in place within the anchor holes 15. In either configuration,the pins 16 are configured such that when the protrusion actuator 17 isdepressed, the tapered end 19 gradually pushes the pins 16 up out of theanchor holes 15, without completely pushing them out thereof. It iscritical that the body of the pins 16 still remain at least partiallywithin the anchor holes 15 so that the pins 16 can support the anchorbody 11 after installation. The tapered end 19 of the protrusionactuator 17 is able to get under and then push up the pins 16 becausethe inner end of the pins 16 is rounded and therefore the tapered end 19can slide under the pins 16. This allows the pins 16 to engage with thesurrounding concrete without completely separating from the anchor body11 and therefore still being able to support the anchor body 11.

The anchor body 11 is placed within the pre-drilled bore and then theanchor installation tool 41 is removably attached to the anchor body 11via the internal threading of the upper threaded portion 12. The anchorinstallation tool 41 is designed to gradually depress the protrusionactuator 17 within the internal bore 21. As the protrusion actuator 17is pushed through the internal bore 21 of the lower portion 13 towardsthe lower portion's 13 terminal end, the tapered end slides under anypins 16 with which it comes in contact. The pins 16 are then graduallyforced through the anchor holes 15 into the surrounding concrete as thecross-sectional area of the tapered end 19 increases. The anchorinstallation tool 41 also rotates the anchor body 11 as the protrusionactuator 17 is depressed in order to carve out grooves in the concrete.When the protrusion actuator 17 is fully depressed, the base of the pins16 rest against the protrusion actuator 17, preventing them from beingpushed back into the anchor body 11. The grooves carved out by the pins16 therefore act as supports preventing the protrusion anchor assemblyfrom being removed from the bore. After the anchor body 11 is installedwithin the bore, the jamb nut 20 is threadably engaged along theexternal threading of the upper threaded portion 12 and tightened untilthe jamb nut 20 is flush to the surface of the concrete, therebymechanically securing the anchor between the protrusion pins 16 and thejamb nut 20.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown a perspective view of the anchorinstallation tool 41. The anchor installation tool 41 is generallycylindrical and consists of two portions: a body portion 42 and a driverrod 45. The anchor installation tool 41 may be made of a wide variety ofmetals, but is preferably comprised of Grade 8 steel. The body portionconsists of an upper tool portion 44 and a lower tool threaded portion43. The lower tool threaded portion 43 is adapted to engage with theinternal threading of the upper threaded portion 12 of the anchor body11. The body portion 42 has a channel through its entire length, whichis adapted to permit the driver rod 45 to extend therethrough.

The anchor installation tool 41 is removably secured to the anchor body11, which is placed within a pre-drilled hole in the concrete or otherhard, rigid material. The two components are secured together via thelower threaded portion 43 of the anchor installation tool 41, which isremovably screwed onto the internal threading of the upper threadedportion 12 of the anchor body 11. The driver rod 45 extends through thebody portion 42 of the anchor installation tool 41, into the internalbore 21 of the anchor body 11, and presses against the driver end 18 ofthe protrusion actuator 17. The driver rod 45 has a pad 46 at itsopposite end that prevents the driver rod 45 from being pushed all theway into the channel, making it irretrievable. The driver rod 45 isfully depressed once it comes in contact with the engagement means 49.The engagement means 49 is further used as a surface that can be used todrive the rotation of the anchor body 11, generally with an impactwrench, because the rotation from the anchor installation tool 41 istransferred to the anchor body 11 through the engagement of theirthreaded portions 12, 43. A block nut 48 rests between the upper toolportion 44 and the lower tool threaded portion 43 to prevent the anchorinstallation tool 41 from being pushed too deeply into the anchor body11.

When the anchor installation tool 41 is secured in position on theanchor body 11, some type of driving means, such as an impact wrench, isattached to the engagement means 49 in order to rotate the entireprotrusion anchor assembly while at the same time pressing the driverrod 45 inwards. The protrusion pins 16 extend out farther the more thedriver rod 45 is depressed because of the tapered end 19 of theprotrusion actuator 17. The tapered end 19 has a smaller circumferentialarea at its terminal end, which is the first part to come in contactwith the pins 16, and said area gradually increases until it reaches thedriver end 18. The deeper the driver rod 45 is pushed, the farther theprotrusion actuator 17 is in turn pushed inward and therefore thecircumferential area supporting the base of the pin 16 increases as thesmaller area of the terminal end of the tapered end 19 goes past theinner end of the pins 16. The extended pins 16 then rotate within thebore, along with the rest of the assembly, carving out grooves withinthe bore. After a certain period of time the pins 16 are fully extendedand the grooves are sufficiently carved. At that point, the jamb nut 20is tightened against the surface of the concrete in order to secure theanchor body 11 between the jamb nut 20 and the pins 16 within thecarved-out grooves. The amount of inward force exerted by the user ontothe impact wrench determines how fast the protrusion pins 16 extendbecause the inward force pushes the driver rod 45, which in turn pushesthe protrusion actuator 17 deeper into the internal bore 21. After thejamb nut 20 is secured, the anchor installation tool 41 may be removedby unthreading it from the upper threaded potion 12. After the anchorinstallation tool 41 is removed, it can be re-used to install multipleanchor bodies 11.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown a cross-sectional view of theanchor body 11 and the anchor installation tool 41 engaged together. Thelower tool threaded portion 43 engages with the internal threading ofthe upper threaded portion 12 in order to secure the two componentstogether. When the driver rod 45 is fully depressed, the pad 46 and theengagement means 49 are flush against each other, leaving the engagementmeans 49 free to be rotated by an impact wrench, or any other devicethat is capable of simultaneously keeping the pad 46 fully depressed androtating the engagement means 49.

The jamb nut 20 and the pins 16 work in tandem to secure the anchor body11 within the bore. The jamb nut 20 secures flush against the surface ofthe concrete in order to keep the anchor body 11 in position. The mainelement that keeps the present protrusion anchor assembly in positionwithin the concrete is the pins 16, however. The pins 16 cannot retreattowards the inner axis of the anchor body 11 because their bases aresupported by the fully depressed protrusion actuator 17, which holdsthem in place. The pins 16 also cannot move in response to ahorizontally applied stress because they are held within the groovesthat were carved by them as they were extended and rotated. Since thepins 16 cannot move and are integral with the rest of the presentprotrusion anchor body 11, they secure the entire anchor body 11 withinthe concrete bore.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, there is shown, respectively, aperspective view of the security plug 61 and the security plug 61engaged with the anchor body 11. The security plug 61 consists of twocomponents, the threaded plug portion 63 that is connected to theelongated rod portion 62. The threaded plug portion 63 is adapted to beable to engage with the internal threading of the upper threaded portion12 of the anchor body 11, just like the lower tool threaded portion 43of the anchor installation tool 41. The elongated rod portion 62 is longenough such that it holds the protrusion actuator 17 in place pressedagainst the terminal end of the internal bore 21 when the threaded plugportion 63 is fully threadably engaged with the internal thread of theupper threaded portion 12.

The security plug 61 is necessary in this embodiment because when theanchor installation tool 41 is removed, there is nothing securing theprotrusion actuator 17 in place. If the protrusion actuator 17 couldmove, then there would be nothing securing the protrusion pins 16 inplace. If there was nothing keep the protrusion pins 16 in place, then asufficient force could rip the anchor body 11 from the bore because thepins 16 are the primary securing element. Therefore, the security plug61 is attached to the anchor body 11 after the anchor installationdevice 41 has been removed to keep the entire assembly in place andfully secured.

Referring now to FIG. 6, there is shown a close-up cutaway view of thelower portion 13 of the anchor body 11 after it has been installedwithin a pre-drilled bore in concrete. The pins 16 arehorizontally-aligned such that each set of pins 16 works in tandem tocarve out a single groove within the bore around the anchor body 11.Once the grooves are sufficiently carved out via the simultaneousdepressing and rotating motions of the anchor installation tool 41, andthe security plug 61 is inserted, the pins 16 prevent the anchor body 11from being removed from the bore because they are supported in theirfully extended position by the protrusion actuator 17 and thereforecreate a protuberance that catches against the edge of the groove. Theeffective cross-sectional area of the anchor body 11 is larger than thatof the bore, except for the grooves, thereby preventing the anchor bodyfrom being withdrawn.

Referring now to FIG. 7, there is shown the method of installing thepresent protrusion anchor assembly. After the anchor body 11 has beenplaced within the pre-drilled bore, the installation tool 41 isthreadably engaged with the internal threading of the upper threadedportion 12 of the anchor body 11. An impact wrench 70 is then used tosimultaneously depress the pad 46 of the driver rod 45 so that theterminal end of the driver rod 45 subsequently comes into contact with,and then depresses, the protrusion actuator 17. The tapered end 19 ofthe protrusion actuator 17 slides under the rounded inner ends of thepins 16 and gradually extends the pins 16 as the cross-sectional area ofthe tapered end 19 increases. The impact wrench 70 rotates the presentprotrusion anchor assembly while simultaneously extending the pins 16,as discussed above, because the socket of the impact wrench 70 fits overthe pad 46 and engages with the engagement means 49. The engagementmeans 49 is integrally connected to the rest of the present protrusionanchor assembly and thus the impact wrench 70 is able to rotate theentire assembly. The pins 16 are therefore extended while at the sametime rotated, which carves shelves in the surrounding bore for the pins16 to rest in and act as protuberances preventing the anchor body 11from being withdrawn from the bore.

Referring now to FIGS. 8 and 9, there is shown an alternate embodimentof the present protrusion anchor assembly. The anchor body 11 of thisembodiment has only an anchor external threading 74 portion, rather thanboth external and internal threading as in the previously describedembodiments. Furthermore, the internal bore 21 has an initial smallerdiameter and then steps up to a larger diameter as the internal bore 21extends towards the terminal end of the anchor body 11, near the end caphole 14 at the lower portion 13. The larger diameter is designed totightly house the protrusion actuator 17, while still allowing it toslide up and down the channel. This embodiment otherwise has all of thesame other structural features of the anchor body 11 described above,including a jamb nut 20 threadably secured along the exterior of theanchor body 11 and a plurality of pins 16 extending through anchor holes15. A single aligned row of pins 16 is shown in the depicted embodiment,but the present disclosure contemplates the inclusion of multiple rowsof aligned pins 16 for carving multiple support shelves into thesurrounding bore.

The installation portion of the alternate embodiment of the presentprotrusion anchor assembly is designed to have a tool internal threading72 portion, rather than external threading as disclosed in the priorembodiments. The internal threading 72 of the anchor installation tool41 engages with the external threading 74 of the anchor body 11 portion,rather than having external threading that engages with internalthreading on the anchor body 11 as previously disclosed. This embodimentincreases the retention strength of the present protrusion anchorassembly because it eliminates the need for dual-sided threading on theanchor body 11, which is a point of potential structural weakness. Thealternate embodiment of the anchor installation tool 41 further has astop 71 disposed along the length of the internal section of the driverrod 45 preventing the driver rod 45 from being removed from the channel47. The channel 47 of the alternate embodiment has an initial smallerdiameter and then steps up to a larger diameter as the channel 47extends towards the terminal end of the anchor installation tool 41. Thesmaller diameter of the channel is smaller than the diameter of the stop71, thereby preventing the driver rod 45 from being pulled therefrom.

Although the configuration for the alternate embodiment is altered, themethod of installing the present protrusion anchor assembly issubstantially unchanged. The anchor body 11 is placed within apre-drilled bore within concrete or another rigid material. The toolinternal threading 72 of the anchor installation tool 41 is thenthreaded onto the anchor external threading 74 of the anchor body 11.The driver rod 45 is then simultaneously depressed and rotated by animpact wrench fitted with a deep socket, or a similarly functioningdevice. This process depresses the protrusion actuator 17, which in turnextends the pins 16 from the anchor holes 15, while at the same timerotating the entire present assembly. The pins 16 carve out shelves intothe surrounding bore, which allows the pins 16 to stay in their fullyextended position and act as protuberances preventing the anchor frombeing withdrawn therefrom. The anchor installation tool 41 is thenunthreaded from the anchor body 11 and the jamb nut 20 is then tightenedagainst the concrete face to keep the anchor body 11 in place. Theanchor body 11 is then ready to have objects secured to it. The anchorinstallation tool 41 may be reused to install other anchor body 11portions.

Overall, the device serves as an alternative to previous expansiblefasteners intended to be used in concrete or other hard, rigid material,wherein the present invention provides a plurality of protrusion pinsthat carve a groove or grooves into the surrounding concrete bore inorder to secure the anchor body. The anchor body cannot subsequently beremoved from the bore because the pins act as protuberances that catchagainst the edges of the grooves. The circumferential area of the anchorbody, plus the length of the pins, is larger than the area of the bore,thereby preventing the anchor from being drawn through the bore and thussecuring the anchor in place within the bore.

It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown anddescribed in what is considered to be the most practical and preferredembodiments. It is recognized, however, that departures may be madewithin the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications willoccur to a person skilled in the art. With respect to the abovedescription then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensionalrelationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations insize, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assemblyand use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in theart, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in thedrawings and described in the specification are intended to beencompassed by the present invention.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of theprinciples of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications andchanges will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is notdesired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operationshown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications andequivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of theinvention.

I claim: 1) A protrusion anchor fastener, comprising: an anchor bodyhaving an upper threaded portion and a lower portion; said lower portionhaving an end cap hole at its terminal end and a plurality of anchorholes; said anchor body having an internal bore extending therethrough;a protrusion actuator having a driver end and a tapered end; a pluralityof pins having an inner rounded end and an outer end, said pins adaptedto be pushed through said anchor holes by said protrusion actuator andengage with surrounding material as said protrusion actuator isdepressed; a jamb nut adapted to engage with said external thread andsecure said anchor body against a concrete surface. 2) The protrusionanchor of claim 1, wherein said upper threaded portion has an externalthread and an internal thread. 3) The protrusion concrete anchor ofclaim 1, further comprising a security plug having an elongated rodportion and a threaded plug portion adapted to engage with said internalthread. 4) The protrusion concrete anchor of claim 2, further comprisinga security plug having an elongated rod portion and a threaded plugportion adapted to engage with said internal thread. 5) The protrusionconcrete anchor of claim 1, wherein said anchor holes are radiallyspaced 90 degrees apart. 6) The protrusion concrete anchor assembly ofclaim 2, wherein said anchor holes are radially spaced 90 degrees apart.7) A protrusion anchor installation tool, comprising: a driver rod witha pad; a body portion having an upper tool portion and a lower toolthreaded portion; said body portion having a channel through which saiddriver rod is inserted; said lower tool threaded portion adapted toengage with said upper threaded portion and be secured thereto; saiddriver rod adapted to push said protrusion actuator through saidinternal bore; said upper tool portion having an engagement means. 8) Aprotrusion anchor assembly, comprising: an anchor body having an upperthreaded portion and a lower portion; said lower portion having an endcap hole at its terminal end and a plurality of anchor holes; saidanchor body having an internal bore extending therethrough; a protrusionactuator having a driver end and a tapered end; a plurality of pinshaving an inner rounded end and an outer end, said pins adapted to bepushed through said anchor holes by said protrusion actuator and engagewith surrounding material as said protrusion actuator is depressed; ajamb nut adapted to engage with said external thread and secure saidanchor body against a concrete surface; an anchor installation toolhaving a driver rod with a pad and a body portion having an upper toolportion and a lower tool threaded portion; said body portion having achannel through which said driver rod is inserted; said lower toolthreaded portion adapted to engage with said upper threaded portion andbe secured thereto; said driver rod adapted to push said protrusionactuator through said internal bore; said upper tool portion having anengagement means. 9) The protrusion anchor assembly of claim 8, whereinsaid upper threaded portion has an external thread and an internalthread. 10) The protrusion concrete anchor assembly of claim 8, furthercomprising a security plug having an elongated rod portion and athreaded plug portion adapted to engage with said internal thread. 11)The protrusion concrete anchor of claim 9, further comprising a securityplug having an elongated rod portion and a threaded plug portion adaptedto engage with said internal thread. 12) The protrusion concrete anchorassembly of claim 8, wherein said anchor holes are radially spaced 90degrees apart. 13) The protrusion concrete anchor assembly of claim 9,wherein said anchor holes are radially spaced 90 degrees apart.